SAN DIEGO — José Altuve and the Houston Astros are eager to match the 2004 Boston Red Sox in the history books.
Beating the Tampa Bay Rays three more times to reach the World Series won’t be easy, but the Astros believe they can do it.
George Springer broke a tie with a two-run homer, Altuve also went deep and hit an RBI double, and Zack Greinke escaped a bases-loaded jam as Houston stayed alive in the AL Championship Series with a 4-3 victory Wednesday night in Game 4.
“We are very motivated,” Altuve said. “We know the team we have and yes, we want to be the second team coming back from 0-3.”
Big league clubs leading 3-0 in a best-of-seven post-season series are 37-1. The only one to rally from an 0-3 deficit was the 2004 Red Sox, who beat the New York Yankees in the ALCS and went on to win their first World Series in 86 seasons.
Greinke pitched six effective innings for the Astros, who held a meeting before the game. Houston manager Dusty Baker said he had no idea what was brought up, but he also addressed the team.
“We’ve got some real leaders on this team, some dominant personalities who listen more than they talk,” Baker said.
With Altuve atoning for his poor defence in this series, the Astros finally got their offence going after being pushed to the brink of a sweep. Seeking their third pennant in four seasons, they trail 3-1 going into Game 5 on Thursday afternoon.
“I’m just happy that we won the game and we’re on to tomorrow,” Springer said.
The Rays remain one win from advancing to the World Series for the second time in franchise history.
“The team feels good,” rookie slugger Randy Arozarena said. “We’re going to stay positive. We came in here knowing we were going to face a solid team. They’re probably feeling the same way.”
Greinke, bothered by a sore arm in the Division Series against Oakland, made only one big mistake when he allowed a two-run homer to Arozarena that tied the game at 2 in the fourth.
Given a 4-2 lead by Springer’s homer in the fifth, Greinke’s biggest pitch came when he struck out Mike Brosseau on a 3-2 changeup to end the sixth with the bases loaded.
After Greinke allowed consecutive singles by Manuel Margot and Austin Meadows with one out, Baker came out for a chat and decided to let the veteran right-hander continue. Arozarena struck out on a check-swing and Ji-Man Choi singled to load the bases before Greinke fanned Brosseau.
On Friday night, Brosseau hit a go-ahead homer in the eighth inning off Aroldis Chapman of the New York Yankees that carried the Rays to a 2-1 victory in the Game 5 clincher of the ALDS.
Baker said he thought about putting in Ryan Pressly, but catcher Martin Maldonado said, “He can get this guy.”
“I guess I don’t change my mind, but I hadn’t had my mind really, really made up until I got out there and I saw the look in Zack’s eyes and Maldy was adamant about he can get this guy,” Baker said. “I said, ‘OK then you’ve got it then. This is the ballgame here.'”
Greinke said the meeting was “very intense,” and praised the 71-year-old Baker. “He reads people really good. I don’t think I’ve ever seen him make a wrong decision when he trusts what he sees. He sees the right thing almost 100% of the time. And not everyone has that skill.”
Greinke held the Rays to two runs and five hits for his first post-season win since 2015. He struck out seven and walked one.
Tampa Bay’s Willy Adames hit an RBI double off the bottom of the left-centre wall and advanced to third on a wild pitch in the ninth before Pressly got rookie Yoshi Tsutsugo on a liner to right for the save.
“We’ve got to get the bats going, no doubt about it,” Rays manager Kevin Cash said. “We’ve been carried here by our pitching and defence, which is how we’re built, but we sure would like to get some (hits).”
Rays towering right-hander Tyler Glasnow also went six innings, allowing four runs and eight hits while striking out five and walking two.
Altuve hit a homer in the first and an RBI double in the third for a 2-0 lead. And when he needed to make an accurate throw to second for a key forceout in the ninth, the star second baseman was right on target.
His offence helped make up for his three errors that helped the Rays win Games 2 and 3 to move to the cusp of their first World Series since 2008.
Altuve homered for the second straight game and third time this series, all in the first inning. He and Springer are tied for the most homers in Astros post-season history, 18.
With two outs in the third, Altuve doubled into the right-field corner to bring in Maldonado.
“One of the most impressive things about José is how he can clear his head and contribute in all aspects of his game, and to see him go out there and still wanting the ball hit to him and still swinging the bat is a testament to him,” Springer said.
Watching Altuve’s errors was “tough,” Springer said. “But I know who he is. I know the head he has on his shoulders. He’s our leader and he always has been.”
Arozarena homered onto the lower balcony on the Western Metal Supply Co. brick warehouse in the left-field corner with one out in the fourth to tie the game at 2. An inning later, Springer one-upped him when he hit a two-run shot onto the upper balcony of Petco Park’s main landmark to regain the lead for the Astros.
“I knew it was a homer. I was able to hit a high fastball there. It’s a tight line, so I’m happy that it stayed fair,” Springer said.
It was the third home run of the post-season for Springer, the MVP of the 2017 World Series.
It was the fifth of these playoffs for Arozarena, who homered in each of the first three games against the Yankees and then connected in the ALCS opener.
THE VILLAINS
The Astros remain villains in many people’s eyes for their sign-stealing scandal three years ago. On Wednesday night, someone with a megaphone on a balcony on a nearby building heckled members of the 2017 team by name: “Carlos Correa. You are a cheater. Shame on you. Josh Reddick. You are a cheater. Shame on you,” and so on.
TRAINER’S ROOM
Rays: Gold Glove CF Kevin Kiermaier was out of the lineup with a bruised left hand after being hit with a pitch in Tampa Bay’s five-run sixth inning Tuesday night. Cash said Kiermaier would be available to hit if necessary.
UP NEXT
Rays: TBA.
Astros: TBA.
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DETROIT (AP) — The Detroit Red Wings made another investment this week in a young standout, signing Moritz Seider to a seven-year contract worth nearly $60 million.
The Red Wings announced the move with the 23-year-old German defenseman on Thursday, three days after keeping 22-year-old forward Lucas Raymond with a $64.6 million, eight-year deal.
Detroit drafted Seider with the No. 6 pick overall eight years ago and he has proven to be a great pick. He has 134 career points, the most by a defenseman drafted in 2019.
He was the NHL’s only player to have at least 200 hits and block 200-plus shots last season, when he scored a career-high nine goals and had 42 points for the second straight year.
Seider won the Calder Trophy as the league’s top rookie in 2022 after he had a career-high 50 points.
Red Wings general manager Steve Yzerman is banking on Seider, whose contract will count $8.55 million annually against the cap, and Raymond to turn a rebuilding team into a winner.
Detroit has failed to make the playoffs in eight straight seasons, the longest postseason drought in franchise history.
The Red Wings, who won four Stanley Cups from 1997 to 2008, have been reeling since their run of 25 straight postseasons ended in 2016.
Detroit was 41-32-9 last season and finished with a winning record for the first time since its last playoff appearance.
Yzerman re-signed Patrick Kane last summer and signed some free agents, including Vladimir Tarasenko to a two-year contract worth $9.5 million after he helped the Florida Panthers hoist the Cup.
PENTICTON, B.C. – Vancouver Canucks goalie Thatcher Demko says he’s been working his way back from a rare lower-body muscle injury since being sidelined in last season’s playoffs.
The 28-year-old all star says the rehabilitation process has been frustrating, but he has made good progress in recent weeks and is confident he’ll be able to return to playing.
He says he and his medical team have spent the last few months talking to specialists around the world, and have not found a single other hockey player who has dealt with the same injury.
Demko missed several weeks of the last season with a knee ailment and played just one game in Vancouver’s playoff run last spring before going down with the current injury.
He was not on the ice with his teammates as the Canucks started training camp in Penticton, B.C., on Thursday, but skated on his own before the sessions began.
Demko posted a 35-14-2 record with a .918 percentage, a 2.45 goals-against average and five shutouts for Vancouver last season.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 19, 2024.
Alysha Newman was initially disappointed when her historic season, marked by an Olympic medal and record-breaking performances, came to a close.
The 30-year-old from Delaware, Ont., finished third in the Diamond League final on Saturday, clearing 4.80 metres in the women’s pole vault. That capped a campaign where Newman overcame an ankle injury late in the indoor season to win Olympic bronze.
“The first emotion I had was I was kind of sad,” she said. “With the injury that happened in March, I felt like I was two, maybe four weeks, I guess, behind everyone. So I was still really motivated to compete.
“I know the world rankings came out (Wednesday) and I was second, so my coaches texted me this morning and said, ‘highest finish ever of all time, you deserve a great break.’ And that just made me really excited.”
Newman enjoyed consistency heading into the Paris Games, clearing 4.75 metres or more in three of her last four meets after returning from injury.
Heading into Paris, Newman held the Canadian record of 4.83 metres, achieved indoors on Feb. 22. Her outdoor best was 4.82 metres, set in 2019—the last time she finished a season ranked in the top five, at No. 3.
Before this year, Newman had never medalled on the world or Olympic stage, but she reset her national record to 4.85 metres in Paris to become the first Canadian woman to medal in pole vault at the Games.
Only William Halpenny (bronze at the 1912 Stockholm Games) and Edward Archibald (bronze at the 1908 London Games) had medalled for Canada in pole vault before Newman.
“I was just telling my mom last night … I’m doing so many things, and I haven’t been able to sit. But I did go to Nice three days after I got my medal, and I sat and kind of just enjoyed having that medal and more so what it took to get that,” Newman said.
“Felt like a diploma. It felt like a reward that, you know, here’s hardware for your hard work, and it really was rewarding for me to sit in the moment.”
Newman called it “one of the most unforgettable seasons I’ll ever have in my career.”
“A part of me feels that I needed a season like this to take it even more serious, leading into (the 2028) L.A. (Olympics),” she said. “I think it shows me that this is where my life is supposed to be. I am supposed to be this incredible textbook pole vaulter.”
Newman now has motivation beyond just winning medals; she believes she can break the world record of 5.06 metres set by Russia’s Yelena Isinbayeva in 2009.
Outside of competition, Newman is dedicated to helping the next generation of athletes, from raising funds for a high-performance facility in Caledon, Ont., to advocating for better resources and pay in her sport.
“Leading into L.A., I really want to make noise in the sport on helping amateur athletes get paid,” said Newman, who famously supplements her income with an OnlyFans account. “I think we underestimate what we put our bodies through and a lot of us do this for free, but it’s not free.”
“Starting with building the facility to get more athletes to qualify for the Olympics would be my No. 1 goal. And then after that is really having movement and words that will start, you know, getting people more on board and agree for us to get paid better.”
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 19, 2024.
